Wednesday 21st September, 2016             1640

Yesterday morning I awoke with real soreness just below the outside of my right knee, accompanied by an angry red, hot area. Now this simply had to have been caused by all the walking the previous day and so out came the diclofenac so that hopefully I wouldn’t be seen lame when I got to school. It worked a treat, quite possibly because I only ever take it when I need it and tolerance hasn’t been allowed to build up.

I hadn’t (and still haven’t) received the marks for the students or course book recommendations. If it’s not one thing with Cyprus it’s another. I am fumbling in the dark here without a clue as to what direction I should be taking these students and that got me thinking last night.

In fact I became quite annoyed sat all by myself because, ridiculous as it may sound, I reckon I have been set up to fail. It’s almost akin to throwing a bricklayer into a room with a person in agony and gaily telling them to perform an emergency appendectomy. At least if I could see example exams I could work out what to do but I have absolutely nothing. But don’t for one moment think I am not making my views known, the last thing I will let happen is for anyone (with a grain of truth) be able to say I am useless. Well, not unless they have given me what I have asked for!

Still no oven but perhaps I was spoilt in Chizhou, which is accessible for online deliveries in comparison to here. In fact I am watching Michael Palin’s series about being in the Sahara and was put in mind of here. With being on a budget I can’t justify buying easy to cook expensive things to eat (and with all this exercise I am eating more than ever since I came to China) so I am trying to be inventive.

Now so far my bread making attempts have not been good and won’t be until I buy high gluten flour so I delved into a recipe book on bread that Kevin gave me a few years ago. It had been a free gift with his Panasonic machine. I came across a recipe for pitta bread and thought perhaps in the future I could make that. Until I learnt that they can also be cooked on the stovetop. Guess what’s (hopefully) for dinner tomorrow! I already have the makings, so all I need is some salad and perhaps some plastic ham and mayonnaise and if it works  then the sky will be the limit once I have more money behind me. I quite like chilli con carne stuffed pittas.

It was a nice day today at 24C and rather satisfyingly according to the web, a couple of degrees warmer than Chizhou - albeit only for the one day before they get back up to thirty. The roads around my home are a veritable building works. I had hoped that after suffering all that for years in Chizhou that I had left that behind but no, I am back in it again. The difference here is that the climate is so dry, instead of mud every time I venture out I am walking through clouds of dust.

I was sitting here earlier pondering on safety regulations (or lack of) after my eyes alighted on the two fire extinguishers in my living room. In Chizhou in the new flats there was nothing. No fire hose, extinguishers, emergency exits or automatic night lights and nobody batted an eyelid. Here I have my front door to escape and that’s it. Being on the ground floor every window of mine is surrounded by a metal cage intended to keep thieves out  but which also would prevent my escape because there is no means of unlocking them - they are single construction and bolted to the outside walls.

Nearly forgot. Yesterday afternoon I nearly passed out when the school bus arrived three minutes early! Not only that but I was the only passenger and we got to school in thirty five minutes so I ended up with half an hour to kill before class. I think the driver may have understood my comment on arrival as to how he couldn’t do that every day……